Halfway There: a SALTer's Tale

Happy New Year! I hope and pray that everyone was able to enter 2013 with thanksgiving, zeal and anticipation for God’s will to be done on earth. 

A note about Christmas: the holiday was an interesting time for me and I just thank the Lord for who he is: my comforter, my healer, my Saviour and my joy. As I entered the holiday with apprehension and a nasty bug in my stomach, I was able to see his goodness and experience a unique Christmas. Indonesians really know how to celebrate! Christmas was packed with services, events, and a community-wide celebration of the Lord’s birth. Aside from a little bit of boredom from sitting in my room for days, the break I had after all the Christmas hype was positive.

Christmas Day at church 

The new year was heralded in by events and circumstances quite new to me! While troubled that I was not surrounded by a big group of familiar faces and that I did not waltz, I did get to do a few cool things. For example, I went to an evening church service that I was able to follow and use for reflection; I stood 20 metres from where my neighbours set off fireworks; and on January 1^st, I partook in one of my favourite household chores: weeding! When will that happen again?

My vacation concluded with a family road-trip to Malang/Batu, a tourist city in East Java. I love the highlands of Java and had an amazing time in this special area. The lush mountainsides reminded me of Europe, especially the Mediterranean (cypress trees will forever have that connotation in my mind). We passed fields and apple orchards and villages built around a central mosque (that’s the part that is not Western European). I was thankful for cool weather here too, what to most Indonesians is “cold”; I was thankful for a few days that I didn’t sweat at all! We went to Jawa Timur Park 2, one of the main attractions of this part of the island. Experienced your typical amusement park and a huge zoo as well. It was an afternoon of mixed emotions. For an animal lover like me, it was amazing to see SO many creatures! I marvel at the diversity there is. I also got to “encounter” a few animals: a python, an Asian badger-like creature, an iguana, an elephant, a macaw and a baby tiger. However, I admit that the park standards and respect I saw made me a little miserable. Once, in a moment when my animal-loving friend from home had a lack of better words, she exclaimed, “I love ALL the animals of the world!” That’s how I felt. “Please people, DON’T tap the glass and tease the poor animal [who already looks lifeless]!” Not saying that this is the model of all zoos here; it was just my personal experience.

Jalan-jalan around Malang with my host family 

Catherine the cuddly macaw; my reaction: take the picture, quick!

Nevertheless, bad experiences aside, I was refreshed and returned to Jogja in time to prepare for the new semester. I will be busier this semester with a few more things on my plate. There will be more “native speaker visits”, where I assist English classes, and I will have a bigger role in organizing the weekly English Club. I’m looking forward to some events such as a potluck, cultural discussions, and hopefully a masquerade party! Furthermore, I have homework to do for my own education. This is the practical side of my internship and is the equivalent of any third-level course. As time-consuming as it is, I am thankful for what I have learned so far from my reading and I appreciate those moments when I can apply it! 

Things are church are back in full swing and I am back to singing in choir and joining bible studies. There's annual Mennonite Day coming up (funny, I'm not Mennonite yet I'm going to perform something...) and a chance to perform traditional Javanese art! 

So that’s where I am right now! I am fairly healthy, enjoying daily conversations, discovering my own strengths and weaknesses, learning to pray ardently when it’s all I can give to others, seeking wonder and looking forward to the next six months with expectation. 

Expectation for God to use me to bless others; 

expectation that I will learn tons from them; 

expectation that I will long for my family and for hugs from those that know me best; 

expectation that I will cry many tears when I leave this place in July; 

and finally, expectation that these 11 months will change me. 

As the title suggests, I am halfway done my SALT term. Wow! It’s been an adventure and quite the serving/learning experience. The next months will probably go by so fast!

Please pray for my perseverance and strength. I often lose the wonder of this place and awe at the amazing opportunity I’m living; I pray that I find those things and hold tightly to them. May the passion of our Lord inspire us all to move ahead and work for his Kingdom, wherever we are! Furthermore, please pray for the growing church in Indonesia and for the fervour they have for God, and also for those that live under the law. May they find freedom in Christ and intimacy with their creator.

Thank you for your prayers and be assured, they keep me going. I am excited that we can be part of God’s mission together. “To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world” – Karl Barth.  

With gratitude, 

Lisi

On a recent trip to Salatiga,with most of the YALT team. These are our "durian faces". Durian is a  unique, smelly fruit . My face is pretty accurate, although I would eat it again (if I had to). We also said goodbye to the SALTer on the right as she returned home to Canada this week. She will be missed!